Located at Jiaosi Township of Yilan County, Linmei Village is regarded as a real life Utopia after years of community development. Although it is not included in the project of Promotion Team. The construction of its Shipan Trail has successfully connects the villagers, ecosystem and the industry, and helped it earn the fame as “Linmei Eco-Village.”
 
With both geography and natural ecology being taken care of, Linmei Village becomes a model “town village”. Originally dependent on Sanmin Community of Jiaosi, Linmei founded its own community development association in 2001 to follow the policy of “Eacg Town Has Its Own Unique Characterristic”, and focus on its own community infrastructure establishment.
 
Resource Recycling

Chairman Teng-hai Yu, who founded Linmei Community Development Association had been village head for 16 years. He recalled that at first the purpose found the association was simply to oppose Jiaosi Township’s attempt to dump the garbage in Linmei. When the ground had to be dug up to bury the garbage, the land and river might get polluted and villagers’ good memory of beautiful landscape would be damaged.

Even before retiring from village head, Yu had devoted himself to the founding of the association to resolve the environment issue. Yu wishes to encourage villagers to improve the environment and resource recycle, and with the support of governmental policy of community infrastructure establishment, the village may be transformed into an eco-village. Now the association has village guards, a resource recycling volunteer team, trail patrol, community caring volunteers, a tour guides training program, and cooking classes, etc.. All these start with village guards and the resource recycling team, with the latter especially contributing a lot to the beautification of Linmei.
 
The leader of resource recycling team, Shiou-yu Li says there are around 40 team members. The oldest is 82 years old and still begins to work at 5 in the morning. The team collects recycled items and sells them after sorting every Monday. From 2002 on, the recycling fund has totaled almost NT$2.2 million. The fund is used as feedback to villagers for scholarship and the elders’ meal subsidy. Yu stresses that it is the best example of turning resources into gold.

• upper: The Linmei Shipan Trail is formed through orogeny. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower left: At the entrance to the trail there is a clear road sign. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower right: Ferns grow in the wetland by the trail. (by Ta-chung Lu)

The Adoption of Shipan Trail

Recycling is the first step toward eco-village.The village starts to prepares itself for the development of ecotourism by offering guide training to volunteerrs. The Linmei Shipan (Rock Platform) Trail that has attracted public attention in recent years is also one of their focus.
 
In 2001, when Forestry Bureau began to promote forestry in community activities, the inspired Yu thought of the Linmei Shipan Trail that he had walked along since childhood. Yu recalled that the Trail used to be villagers’ nightmare because it took a few hours’ walk on it to their fruit and tea gardens on the hills. In the first year after the association founded, he proposed to Forestry Bureau to renovate the industry road so the the beauty of the roadside Tsaonan Lake can be appreciated by everyone.
 
Linmei Village has been reviewed as the model community for 3 successive years and awarded with grants, which leads villagers to realize the importance of developing Shipan Trail. In May 2005, with the support from Forestry Bureau, the Trail was officially announced to open for public. The old irrigating canal and the shaded trail by Dezi Creek finally come out of their mystic past.

Along the Trail grow all kinds of ferns, including Sphaeropteris lepifera, and Persea japonica Sieb by the riverside. Dicrurus aeneus, Rhyacornis fuliginosus and other birds perch along the creek. The spectacular Shipan Waterfall, the huge rock platform, the plants and birds all impress the tourists with their natural beauty as excellent attractions of an ecotour.
 
According to Shu-chin Lin, the guide of Linmei Development Association, all villagers are grateful for the blessing of Shipan that serves as a resting place after farm work and a major profitable site of tourism. They are unanimously willing to participate in the forest trail adoption movement promoted by the Bureau of Forestry and take charge of the cleaning of Linmei Shipan Trail.
 
Linmei Shipan Trail has been selected by the Bureau of Forestry as one of the regional trails open for community adoption under the supervision of Jiaoshi Station of Luodong Forest District Office. Self-motivated villagers would regularly go weeding, cleaning the rock platform, collecting garbage, and pay attention to eco-conservation.

• upper: The exit of Shipan Trail is at the top of the 101-step-long stair. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower left: Along the forest trail is shadowed with trees and is very cool. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower right: Libaosing Canal has great ecological resource. (by Tachung Lu)

Integrating Community Resource

With the growing popularity of Shipan Trail, increasing job opportunities for guide service are offered to villagers while visitors would generate more potential business. Nevertheless, Yu emphasizes that for the purpose of sustainability, a carrying capacity policy on Shipan is initiated since March 1, 2007. A maximum of 350 visitors per day is allowed by issuing number tags at the entrance.
 
In order to develop ecotourism, Linmei Village uses part of the resources recycling fund for the liability insurance of NT$2 million for all visitors to Shipan Trail. The villagers also adopt the Trail for maintenance and ensuring the preservation of biodiversity.
 
With ample understanding about ecotourism, Linmei Villagers truly understand the importance of having a feedback relationship with the environment. They even try to revive local industry through integration of natural and humanity resources for a well-planned ecotour In addition to a tourist information station, citrangequat, and one of the local special products, are included in the DIY activity program of the tour. Visitors can enjoy the fun of collecting farm productions, and attend tge cooking class to learn how to make citrangequat cake or preserved fruit.

News clippings and event photos on the wall of the development association at Linmei Civic Center depict the beautiful vision of the village. Yu says that by the end of 2007, a 5 km long bicycle lane will be completed. After walking through the forest on the Trail, visitors can ride bicycles to the nearby Shihchao Village for seabird watching, exploring the ecosystem along the 3-km-long Libaosing Canal, or chat ting on a cup of tea and enjoying the country life.
 
The Shipan Trail of Linmei

The circular trail is a 1,700m long with the rock in the center. It is a trail for self-guided tour with information boards established along the way, and no admission charge is required. The following are details for caution:
 
1.As par ts of the trail are too narrow for more than one person to pass, tourists are requested to yield the way out of courtesy.
2.No pets are allowed lest their noises should disturb and frighten other visitors.
3.The shaded trail is slippery, and it is suggested that tourists wear skid-proof shoes.
4.No forest resources burglary is allowed.
5.No stream tracing, water activities and shing are allowed.

Teng-hai Yu

Former village head and now director of Yilan County, Jiaosi Township, Linmei Community Development Association and Supervisor of Community Development Sustainability Association, Yilan County.

• upper: Bureau of Forestry sets up all kinds of explanation boards along the trail. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower left: A tour guide provides guiding service at the entrance. (by Ta-chung Lu)
• lower center: The issuance of admission tags can control the number of visitors. (by Tachung Lu)
• lower right: The side product of citrangequat “citrangequat ice”. (by Ta-chung Lu)